According to aviation executives and analysts, despite strong travel demand, ticket costs are expected to rise even more this year due to capacity limitations and delayed aircraft deliveries, which will reduce the number of planes in the skies.

O'Leary did note that costs were not increasing as quickly as had been thought.

Following O'Leary's remarks, shares of easyJet and Lufthansa also fell, with Ryanair down 6.4% at 1354 GMT.

“We anticipated a 5–10% increase in pricing as we looked to the summer. It's surprising that we're going to flatten (price year over year) at 5% upward given that a large portion of the Airbus AIR.PA fleet is now grounded for maintenance,” he said to reporters in Brussels.

O'Leary stated in February that in the ensuing five years, average tickets may rise by ten to fifteen euros.

Following the announcement, airline shares dropped 4%.

Author

A passionate Irish journalist with a love for cycling, politics and of course Portugal especially their sausage rolls.

Rory Mc Ginn